1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal and, in particular, to a multitasking method and mobile terminal enabled with the multitasking method that are capable of executing, while a function is running, another function.
2. Description of the Related Art
A mobile terminal with a single central processing unit can execute only one task at a time. Typically, frequently used operations of the mobile terminal are accessed with shortcut keys.
In such a mobile terminal, when a task is running, another task is not processed even when a corresponding shortcut key is input. For example, although a shortcut key is input for activating a camera function, the camera function is not activated while the CPU is processing data or voice communication. This processing sequence is caused by all functions of the mobile terminal being assigned unique priorities. Accordingly, when a function is called while another function is running, the called function is ignored if it has a lower priority than that of the currently running function. In contrast, if the called function has a higher priority than that of the currently running function, the currently running function is terminated and the called function starts running.
However, the various functions are integrated into the mobile terminal, a need for simultaneously running multiple functions simultaneously has been increased.